Haunted Christmas
by Evil Genius Girl
Summary: Finally updated Ch. 6, although it's rather short. WIP
1. Default Chapter

CSI Christmas

G/S

Author Note: I don't own any of the characters, and if you recognize anything else, I probably don't own it either.

Catherine waltzed into the break room, looking exceedingly proud of herself. Nick and Warrick glanced at each other, wondering what was going on.

"Okay, I give up," Nick said after a moment. "What's going on?" He couldn't recall Catherine ever looking this happy during the holidays. He could only assume that it had something to do with Grissom and Sara.

"Well, there's this old house a few miles out into the desert, and it's supposedly haunted, but the ghosts only appear on Christmas Eve," Catherine said, still smirking like a Cheshire cat. "And I was thinking, I know Grissom doesn't ever have plans for Christmas, and he might be interested in investigating it."

"Um, riiiiight," said Warrick skeptically. "And how are you going to get Sara to go out there with him? They've kind of been at each other's throats, in case you haven't noticed."

"That's where you and Nick come in," she said. "I need one of you to tell Sara about the house. She'll be suspicious if I tell her and she finds out that I told Grissom."

Warrick looked at Nick. "Hey, man, you're closer to her than I am."

Nick frowned. "Yeah, but the way things have been going, she's just as likely to rip my head off as think it's a good idea."

"Come on, Nick," Catherine pleaded. "All in the name of helping the Geek Mindmeld? The worst that can happen is that she says no."

"And what do we do then?"

"Well, we figure out a way to find a dead body or something equally appealing to Sara, then call her in on the case," said Catherine matter-of-factly.

"Call Sara in on what case?" The person in question entered the break room, pausing in her search for caffeine. Sara looked like she hadn't slept in a week, and lack of coffee wasn't helping her mood. "What case?" she repeated, looking at them suspiciously.

I know it's short, but it was just an idea I was kicking around in my brain. Let me know what you think.


	2. I Don't Believe in Ghosts

Haunted Christmas Chapter 2

G/S

Author Note: I still don't own anything that you might recognize.

"It's really nothing important, Sara," Catherine said. "I was just mentioning to Nick and Warrick that there's this strange house a few miles out in the desert that is supposed to be haunted."

"Cath, I hate to be the one to tell you, but there's really no such thing as ghosts," Sara said matter-of-factly. "People just think they are because they want to believe that there's something else out there."

"Well, I don't know about you guys," said Nick, "but I'll take dead bodies and decomps over ghosts any day."

"Aww, is widdle Nicky afraid of the big bad ghosties?" teased Warrick.

"No! It's not that at all," said Nick, almost too quickly. "It's just that I actually believe in them, and I prefer to stay away from them if at all possible."

"Well, I really don't see that there's anything to be afraid of," said Sara. "They aren't real, and there's no way that they can hurt people."

"How do you explain this?" asked Catherine, who had managed to dig up some old casefiles from Grissom's office on the house in question. Sara picked up one of the folders and glanced through it quickly. It was an apparent suicide, although the victim had been shot in the chest. There had been no fingerprints found on the gun, and the victim had been reported as "suffering from severe depression" and had attempted suicide several times before.

"Simple. The vic was depressed; the holidays are enough to make anyone sad," said Sara, with a hint of irony in her voice.

"So how do you explain this?" Catherine asked, holding out another file. This one was dated twelve years ago, Christmas Eve. The victim had been found dead, suspected suicide, yet still shot through the chest.

"Maybe it's a suicide hot spot," Nick offered, a little tired of being ignored.

"Well, I'm actually not scheduled to work Christmas Eve, so I might go check it out," said Sara. _It beats sitting around watching It's a Wonderful Life for the millionth time_.

"I'd offer to go with you for backup but I'm supposed to be at a family dinner," said Warrick, looking a little concerned.

"Well, maybe I can get someone else to go with me," Sara said, a little disappointed that Warrick wouldn't go with her. She knew that Catherine and Nick were scheduled to work, so she didn't even try to ask one of them.

As if on cue, Grissom entered the room. "Go where?" he asked. He had practically been forced to take Christmas Eve off, since he had worked nearly every one since anyone could remember.

Again, let me know if there's anything that's inaccurate (and thanks a million for reading).


	3. See you at six?

Haunted Christmas Chapter Three

G/S

"Oh, nowhere," said Catherine. "But you know about that house a few miles out in the desert where they had that suspicious suicide a few years back? And another suicide before that?"

Grissom nodded, looking puzzled. He had assumed that the conversation was about a bug convention that had come up at the last minute, and this came as a slight surprise to him. "What about it? I was thinking about going out there tonight or tomorrow night since I can't work."

Catherine managed to smother the grin that was threatening to break free. "Well, Sara, it looks like you have someone to go with you."

Grissom's face went from almost a smile at the thought of spending time with Sara to a deer-in-headlights expression when he realized that this would involve being alone with Sara in a possibly haunted house. He was also a little nervous about being around Sara because although they had regained a semblance of friendship, they were still far from their old closeness.

Sara, seeing the look flit across his face, simply snapped, "Well, I can go by myself, it's not like Grissom has to go to do the whole 'protect the CSI' routine since I'm not on duty."

Catherine, seeing what might be about to happen, quickly left the room. Nick and Warrick followed, not wanting to get caught in the crossfire.

"Look, if you don't want to go investigate the house with me, that's totally fine," Grissom said. "But I'm going to be there tomorrow night around six or so when it starts to get dark."

Sara sighed. Every time she thought she was almost over him, something he did or said brought it all back. "That's okay," she said, almost in defeat. "I guess I'll see you there around six, then."


	4. The House

Haunted Christmas

Chapter 4

Author Note: I apologize for the lack of updates on this story, but my computer at home was down during the holidays. However, I'm back at school now, so this should be updated probably once a week now (even though it isn't really the Christmas season anymore).

As Sara parked in front of the old house, she noticed something unexpected about the house. Instead of the creepy, almost Gothic-style building that she had been looking for, the house was a simple two-story one, with something almost like a widow's walk on the roof. She decided to wait in the car until Grissom got there. Not that she was worried, she told herself. It just didn't seem very smart to get out of her car in an unfamiliar (and apparently deserted) area.

Grissom showed up at approximately 6:05. His first reaction upon seeing the house was that it certainly didn't look the part of a typical "haunted house." He had no time for a second thought, as he realized that Sara had arrived before him. He braced himself for a barrage of questions. They didn't come.

Instead, Sara was staring in fascination at the house. "Well, it looks like the American ideal of a haunted house," she said almost sarcastically, hoping this wouldn't turn out to be another of Catherine's fruitless efforts to make her and Grissom talk about their "issues."

"Well, shall we see what it looks like from the inside?" he asked, not knowing what kind of reply she was looking for. When Sara nodded, he wondered uneasily what he had done to make her angry this time. Doing something resembling work would put her in a better mood, or so he had hoped when he volunteered to go see the allegedly haunted house with her.

Sara wondered what he was thinking. _First he offers to check out the house with me, and I was silly enough to think he was actually expressing interest in me._

Frowning slightly, she followed him up the creaky steps to the front door of the house, hoping again that Catherine hadn't plotted this just so that neither she nor Grissom would be able to work that evening. As they entered the house, she became conscious of a strange smell.

"Grissom, do you smell that?" she asked, looking around. Grissom was no longer standing in the room.


	5. Butterflies and Bookshelves

Haunted Christmas

Ch. 5

Author Note: Jayke Manners- I realize that this is very similar to an X-Files episode (in fact, that's where I got the idea for this story). Don't worry, it's going to be different.

Disclaimer: I still own nothing.

Sara flinched slightly as a spider web brushed her face. She had lost sight of Grissom almost as soon as they stepped through the doors, and the thought crossed her mind that this was a lot like that one episode of that TV show she used to watch back in San Francisco.

"Grissom?" she called, her voice echoing slightly throughout the (she hoped) empty rooms. She walked through the hallway into the next room, and gasped in amazement. It was an entomologist's dream house, with glass cases of preserved butterflies hanging on every available space. She wandered over to one of them, but before she could get close to it, she caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye. Turning quickly, she saw what looked like Grissom's jacket disappear through the doorway into the next room.

"Sara?" she heard her name called, the sound seeming to float as though it came from someplace very high up. Looking towards the ceiling, she saw nothing.

"Grissom? Is that you?" she called, with just a hint of nervousness in her voice. Her only answer was creaking overhead, followed by a loud thump. Forgetting her slight fear, she went into the next room and looked up, unable to believe her eyes.

"Um, Sara?" Grissom looked very sheepish, standing on what appeared to be a fallen bookshelf. "I think I may have broken a bookshelf."

Sara winced. The last thing she wanted to do on Christmas Eve was watch Grissom struggle with a bookshelf (_but at least you get to watch Grissom_, her nagging inner voice said). Her inner voice won.

"Here, can I help you with that?" she asked, trying not to laugh at the picture he made. He had somehow managed to knock over one bookshelf while the other one still stood upright. "If I pull on this end and you try to prop that end up, we might be able to stand it back up."

"I'm just extremely grateful that it was the smaller one that fell," Grissom said, breathing slightly harder than normal as they finally got the bookshelf back to its original position. "Can you imagine the damage the larger one could have done to the floor if it had fallen?"

Having examined all of the rooms downstairs, Grissom and Sara were forced to come to the conclusion that there was nothing odd about the house as far as they could see.

"Why did Catherine and Nick think this place was haunted?" Grissom asked Sara with a frown on his face. "There's obviously nothing supernatural about the house."

"Except the room with the butterflies," Sara said thoughtfully. There was something that was bothering her about it, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.


	6. Untitled

Haunted Christmas

Ch. 6

Author Note: I am so sorry that it's taken me so long to update this story (RL has been slightly crazy, plus I've had minor writer's block). Anyway, thanks to anyone who's still with this story.

Disclaimer: If you recognize it, I don't own it.

Sara and Grissom stood in the foyer of the house, having come to the conclusion that there was nothing out of the ordinary in the house, although the butterfly room had certainly been strange. Sara wrinkled her nose.  
"Do you smell that?" she asked Grissom suddenly. A strangely familiar scent had wafted in as if from another room. It smelled almost like formaldehyde, only with a twist. Lemon maybe? Sara couldn't decide. Before Grissom could reply, floorboards creaked overhead.

_Meanwhile, back at the lab_…

"Run, run Rudolph!" Nick sang along with the CD at the top of his lungs. Since Greg wasn't working that night, Nick felt somewhat obligated to fill his shoes, at least in the music department.  
Catherine strolled in. It had been a relatively slow night, since most of the criminals were waiting until all of the presents had been unwrapped to steal them.  
"I wonder how things are going with Griss and Sara," she mused. "Do you think they've killed each other yet?"  
Nick winced at this mental image. "Well, they both know how to hide a body so it won't be found," he said slowly. "My money's on Sara, though. That many years of trying to deal with Grissom can't be healthy."  
"I wonder what they're going to do when they don't see the ghost?" Catherine wondered. "Do you think we should consider the Witness Protection Program?"

_Back in the "haunted" house..._

Having checked both the first and second floors and found nothing (once again), Grissom and Sara found themselves staring at the door to the attic.  
"You go first," Sara suggested, trying to appear polite.  
"No, no. Ladies first," Grissom insisted. He didn't want to admit it, but he had a mortal fear of small, dusty attics, and although the house was big, the attic seemed as though it might be relatively small.  
Sara rolled her eyes, then shoved the door. It swung open with hardly a creak, causing her to raise her eyebrows at Grissom. However, it was what she saw next that caused her to squeak and shove Grissom backwards in her haste to get out of the attic.

End Chapter 6

(I know, it's short, but I promise to update again soon.)


	7. Attics and Mariah Carey?

Haunted Christmas Ch.7

Author Note: Again, I realize there's been a delay in posting this chapter, but it's almost exam time here (and RL's been crazy as usual).

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. The songs used are All I Want For Christmas (Mariah Carey) and Highway to Hell (ACDC).

Sara squeaked and jumped backwards. Grissom merely raised his eyebrows and walked into the attic. Granted, the object staring at them was considerably larger than life, but he saw no real reason for alarm. Sara's skin tone, on the other hand, bore a close resemblance to a pair of latex gloves.  
"Griss, what the Hell is that?" she hissed, not looking away from it.  
"Well, Sara, I would assume that it's an oversized model of a tarantula," Grissom said calmly, stating the obvious without really answering the question.  
"I see that," she retorted, having gotten over her initial fright. "What I meant was what is it doing here? In the attic? Staring at us?"  
Grissom frowned slightly; Sara could almost see the wheels turning in his head.  
"Well, we know the former owner was interested in butterflies," he said, unable to look at Sara. "Maybe he was studying spiders as well."  
Sara frowned. "Catherine could have warned us about this," she muttered under her breath. Ever since the Debbie Marlin case, Grissom had seemed a little strange about butterflies ever since then, even going so far as to throw away the two butterfly prints that used to hang on the walls of his office. Sara had a sneaking suspicion that it had something to do with the fact that Debbie Marlin had borne an almost uncanny resemblance to herself.

Greg had his head buried in a microscope with his headphones on (again). The volume must have been up all the way, as that was the only explanation Warrick could come up with for the song that Greg was belting out.  
"All I want for Christmas... is you!" he wailed at the top of his voice as he looked up to get another slide for comparison. Catching sight of Warrick, he changed his words. "Hey momma, look at me-- I'm on my way to the Promised Land, I'm on a highway to Hell." Stopping before he launched into the chorus, he tried to act cool.  
"Hey man, I've got those DNA samples you needed," he said, trying to act natural.  
"So that's what you listen to when you think nobody's around?" Warrick smirked at him. Greg was gonna pay for this one.  
"Would it help if I said I was just in the holiday mood?" Greg asked hopefully. "Cuz I'm sure there's a good explanation for what you think you just heard."  
Warrick rolled his eyes. He was in no mood to listen to Greg try to weasel his way out of this one. He was far more interested in getting Catherine to stand under the mistletoe with him (without Greg's sarcastic commentary).  
"Look, Greggo, just stay in here for the rest of shift, and I won't tell anyone," Warrick said. _Except maybe Nick_, he added silently.  
Greg could see where Warrick's thoughts were going, and he groaned inwardly. The last thing he needed right now was word of this getting back to Grissom. Speaking of Grissom, where was he?  
"Hey, where's Grissom, anyway?" he asked casually.  
"Oh, you didn't know?" Warrick was surprised. Greg usually knew everything going on in the lab. "He and Sara went to check out a haunted house, but technically he took the night off."  
Greg groaned to himself. So much for his chance with Sara and the mistletoe.


End file.
